Space Drugs Factory Denied Reentry to Earth - Lemmy.world
The Air Force and the FAA denied permission for Varda Space’s capsule to return
and land on Earth. By Passant Rabie After manufacturing crystals of an HIV drug
in space, the first orbital factory is stuck in orbit after being denied reentry
back to Earth due to safety concerns. The U.S. Air Force denied a request from
Varda Space Industries to land its in-space manufacturing capsule at a Utah
training area, while the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) did not
grant the company permission to reenter Earth’s atmosphere, leaving its
spacecraft hanging as the company scrambles to find a solution, TechCrunch first
reported. A spokesperson from the FAA told TechCrunch in an emailed statement
that the company’s request was not granted at this time “due to the overall
safety, risk and impact analysis.” Gizmodo reached out to Varda Space to ask
which regulatory requirements have not been met, but the company responded with
a two-word email that ominously read, “no comment.” The California-startup did
provide an update on its spacecraft through X (formerly Twitter). “We’re pleased
to report that our spacecraft is healthy across all systems. It was originally
designed for a full year on orbit if needed,” Varda Space wrote on X. “We look
forward to continuing to collaborate w/ our gov partners to bring our capsule
back to Earth as soon as possible.” Varda Space launched its spacecraft on board
a Falcon 9 rocket on June 12. The 264-pound (120-kilogram) capsule is designed
to manufacture products in a microgravity environment and transport them back to
Earth. On June 30, its first drug-manufacturing experiment succeeded in growing
crystals of the drug ritonavir, which is used for the treatment of HIV, in
orbit. The microgravity environment provides some benefits that could make for
better production in space, overall reducing gravity-induced defects. Protein
crystals made in space form larger and more perfect crystals than those created
on Earth, according to NASA. “SPACE DRUGS HAVE FINISHED COOKING BABY!!” Delian
Asparouhov, Varda’s co-founder, wrote on X. Unfortunately, the space drugs are
not allowed to come back to Earth, baby. Varda’s capsule was originally
scheduled for reentry on September 5 or 7, but the company’s application was
denied on September 6, according to TechCrunch. Varda formally requested that
the FAA reconsider its decision on September 8, and that request is still
pending. “It’s a very different type of re-entry capsule. If you think about it,
both Dragon and Starliner, these are [SpaceX] vehicles that are $100
million-plus, minimum, to build, and billion-dollar-plus total programs. These
are meant to carry humans, have active control, fully pressurized environments,”
Asparouhov is quoted as saying in an interview in Ars Technica. “We are
effectively the polar opposite type of re-entry vehicle. If those are luxurious
limousines, we’re building like a 1986 Toyota Corolla that is meant to be less
than a million bucks a pop, quickly refurbished, and then shot right back into
space.” Varda’s in-space manufacturing capsule is a byproduct of a growing space
industry, which grants easier access to low Earth orbit. The current regulatory
debacle is a also the result of a young space industry, one in which proper
regulations of spacecraft are still taking shape.
